Discussing Similarities In Four Works by Hawthorne
Discussing Similarities In Four Works by Hawthorne
The old Doctor Heidegger invites four of his respected friends, Mr. Medbourne, Colonel Killigrew, Mr. Gascoigne, and the Widow Wycherly, to his study. Each person in attendance has had the misfortune to see his life and wealth wasted and lives past his time. The three men are all former lovers of the Widow Wycherly.
Once the five acquaintances are seated in the doctor’s study, Heidegger tells the group why he asked them to meet at his home. Heidegger wants to use the four people in one of his infamous experiments he performs to amuse himself. They watch Heidegger as he crosses the room and returns with a leather-bound folio. Inside the papers is a withered rose, close to becoming dust. Dr. Heidegger points to a portrait of a woman hanging in the room and explains the rose came from the woman on the eve of their wedding day fifty-five years ago. He then asks if it is possible if the rose will ever bloom again. The unanimous answer is no.
The doctor places the rose into a vase of fluid. “The crushed and dried petals stirred, and assumed a deepened tinge of crimson, as if the flower were reviving from a death-like slumber” (Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment 3). A faint curiosity is sparked among the guests. Heidegger explains he received a vase containing fluid from the Fountain of Youth and wants only to watch the progress of the experiment. The four elderly individuals agree to drink the bubbly beverage to see if their youth will be restored.
After finishing their drinks, the men and Wycherly see an immediate change in the appearance of one another. No longer feeling like old, miserable creatures, they cry out, “give us more of this wondrous water. We are younger, -but we are still too old!”
(“Dr.’s Heidegger’s Experiment” 5). The men witness a great transformation of the once tired, decrepit widow into a captivating young woman. She runs to a mirror to stare at her own picture. The three men act as if they are drunk. Again, the party asks for and receives another round of drinks from the observing doctor.
Following their third drinks, Medbourne, Killigrew, the Widow Wycherly, and Gascoigne are youngsters filled with cheerfulness as they make fun of the...